Car-coupling.



No. 765,178. PATENTBD JULY 1.9, 1904.

0. HEGATHORN. GAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION TILED MAR. 29. 1904.

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No. 765,178. PATENTED JULY 19, 1904. 0. HEGATHORN.

GAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 29. 1904.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

OTHA HEGATHORN, OF WEST SONORA, OHIO.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 765,178, dated July 19, 1904.

Application filed March 29,1904.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, OTHA HECATHORN, a citizen of the United States, residing at West Sonora, in the county of Preble and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car-Couplers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to car-couplers; and it consists of certain novel features of combination and construction of parts, the preferred form whereof will be hereinafter clearly set forth, and pointed out in the claim.

The main object of my invention, among others, is to provide a car-coupler of the variety commonly designated the Janney type, comprehending a plurality of movable members acting as a cushion to lessen the jar or blow incident to two cars coming together.

A further object of my invention is to provide a car-coupler which will possess great strength and power to resist wear and deterioration incident to hard usage.

Other objects and advantages will be hereinafte'r made clearly apparent, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which are made a part of this application, and in which Figure 1 shows a top plan View of two of my couplers united together or secured in their operative position. Fig. 2 is a similar View of one of my couplers in an open or unlocked position. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of one of my couplers with the knuckle designed to cooperate therewith removed. Fig. 4 is a sectional view of Fig. 1 on line 4 4. Figs. 5 and 6 are perspective views of the two cooperating movable members or knuckles.

For convenience of reference to the various details and cooperating features of my inven- Serial No. 200,606. (No model.)

common the said stem 1 is encircled by a compression-spring cooperating with the seat to serve as a cushion, suitable retaining-bolts being passed through the apertures 2 in the stem, all of which is common.

It will be observed that the stem of my carcoupler is made of angle-iron, whereby great rigidity and strength are attained with the use of a minimum amount of material, the outer end of said stem being designed to fit between the meeting edges of the angle-plates 3, 4, 5, and 6. The stem is locked in engagement with said plates by passing bolts through suitable registering apertures 7 in said parts, as clearly shown. The forward or outer ends of the members 3, 4, 5, and 6 are properly shaped to form the jaws of my coupler, as clearly shown in Fig. 3 and other views, the extreme outer ends of the jaws being provided with the integral ears 8, each ear having an aperture 9 and said apertures being arranged to register with each other. The ears 8 are designed to receive between them the knuckle or looking member 10, which is provided with the aperture 11, designed to be brought into registration with the apertures 9, whereby the knuckle is pivotally secured and held in position by the bolt or knuckle-pin 12, passing through the apertures 9 and 11. The knuckle 10 may be formed in any desired way, preferably by employing a piece of heavy sheet metal of proper character and bending the same upon itself, as clearly shown in Fig. 6, whereby the extreme ends will overlap each other, said overlapping ends being designated by the numerals 13 and 14. By this construction it is necessary to provide a filling-piece or interior member 15, as illustrated in Fig. 6, suitable apertures 16 and 17 being also provided for a purpose hereinafter set forth. 1 also provide in the outer end of the knuckle the slotted opening 18, whereby the knuckle may be placed in cooperation with a common link by entering the link in an opening 18 and passing a pin downward therethrough and through the opening 17. I also providethe auxiliary knuckle member 19, which is so formed as to have the two parallel arms 20 and 21, each of said arms having in the extreme end thereof suitable apertures 22, whereby a kn uckle-pi n 23 may be passed therethrough and through the opening 16 in the main knuckle 10 and as fully shown in Fig. 2. The auxiliary knuckle 19 may also be formed in any desired way, though preferably by forging the same from suitable material. The inner ends of the arms or parallel members 20 and 21 are provided with the slotted openings 24, each designed to be engaged by an ear 25, carried by the arms or branches 26, located upon the opposite side of the draw-head from the position occupied by the extensions or ears 8.

The extensions or members 8 and 26 are reinforced or rigidly held in union with each other by the reinforcing-plate 27, which normally occupies a horizontal position, and in order that the free end of the main knuckle may be moved inward, whereby the aperture 28 in said free end will be brought into registration with the aperture 29 in the plate 27, I form the inner end of said knuckle with the slotted opening 30, thus permitting said free end to swing in place to receive the lockingpin 31, it being understood that said lockingpin may be manually controlled or connected with a crank-shaft in the usual manner, whereby the operator may drop it in place or elevate it as desired from his position at the side or top of the car; but as such controlling appliance forms no part of my invention I deem it unnecessary to enter into a specific description thereof.

Each of my couplers or draw-heads being provided with the form of knuckles hereinbefore described it is obvious that when they are brought together the main knuckle of each part will be forced inward, so that the in ner free end will swing around, so as to bring the apertures 28 and 29 into registration with each other and the knuckle thus secured in said inward position by dropping the lockingpin into registering apertures, thereby insuring that the outer branch of the main knuckle will engage a corresponding part of the knuckle carried by the other draw-head, whereby said parts will overlap and cooperate with each other, as shown in Fig. 1. It is further? more obvious that-during the act of forcing the couplers into engagement with each other or into a locked position the interlocking movement of the main and auxiliary knuckles will serve as a cushion to nullify the blow and jar incident to forcing the draw-heads together, thereby adding greatly to the efiiciency and value of my form of coupler.

It is obvious from the foregoing description that the various parts of my invention may be very cheaply manufactured, inasmuch as suitable heavy sheet metal of proper character is shaped and fashioned so that the greatest strength will be attained, there being no delicate extensions or castings to become broken. The cars or extensions 25, it will be observed, are integrally formed from a portion of the extensions or arms 26 or the vertically-disposed flanges thereof, while the same may be said with respect to the ears or extensions 8 upon the opposite side of the draw-head. I have therefore reduced the component parts of my improved coupler to a minimum and incidentally made it possible to produce the coupler at a comparatively small cost, especially in view of the great efficiency and wearing capacity thereof.

Believing that the advantages and manner of applying my invention to use have thus been made clearly apparent, further description is deemed unnecessary.

l/Vhat I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

The herein-described coupler for railway cars or the like comprising a suitable stem adapted to be anchored in the end of the car and properly cushioned; a coupler member proper comprising the angle-plates 3, 4, 5 and 6 properly shaped to cooperate with the end of said anchoring-stem; integral extensions or branches 8 and 26; a main knuckle pivotally mounted between said extensions 8; an auxiliary knuckle pivotally connected to a lateral extension of the main knuckleand having the parallel branches or arms 20 and 21 apertured to receive a knuckle-pin 23 whereby said arms will be pivotally disposed in en-' gagement with the main knuckle, said auxiliary knuckle also having the compensating slots 24 to cooperate with extensions or anchoring members 25, said extensions 8 and 26 being reinforced and secured together by a horizontally-disposed plate 27, said plate and the inner end of said knuckle having registering apertures 28 and 29 whereby a lockingpin may be introduced into said registering apertures to hold the main and auxiliary knuckles in locked relationship to the opposite coupler, all combined substantially as specified and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

OTHA HECATHORN.

Witnesses:

JOHN WILHELM, CALVIN STUDABAKER. 

